Oy with the Labradoodles Already!
by Shananigans402
Summary: Shawn's on his motorcycle tour of America and happens to stumble across a tiny town called Stars Hollow. While stopping in a diner, he happens to meet a fast-talking, blue eyed woman with a pop culture addiction.
1. A Nice Place to Stop for a Burger

After obsessively re-watching Gilmore Girls, I realized how alike Lorelai Gilmore and Shawn Spencer are and I couldn't stop imagining how a chance meeting between them would go down. So I took to my laptop and started writing a story. I've tried really hard to keep everyone in character, but if you have any comments/suggestions let me know. You don't have to watch both shows to understand what's going on, I've tried to make it easy to understand no matter which fandom you're a part of, be it Psych, Gilmore Girls, both or neither. Although if it's neither I'm not entirely sure why you're here...Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

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It had been nearly two hours since Shawn had bid farewell to New York City with a final stop at his favorite pizza place before hitting the road, but already his stomach was telling him it was time for dinner. He had been hoping to make it all the way to Hartford, Connecticut before dinner. Not that he was headed to Hartford for the food, but it was the closest city and they were bound to have cheap hotels where he could spend the night.

He'd been in NYC for nearly a month, it had definitely been one of the more exciting stops on his cross-country motorcycle trip, but it was also the most expensive and he was nearly broke and needed a place he could live cheaply for a while and make some money. He wasn't sure where his next town to stay a while would be, but he wasn't big on planning these things either. Shawn much preferred just driving wherever he felt like going and settling down for a few weeks in whatever city or town gave off a good vibe.

His stomach twinged painfully again, and he knew he needed to stop for food before he passed out from starvation. A road sign for Stars Hollow caught his eye and he pulled off at the next exit, hoping there'd be some decent food there. It was dark by the time he pulled into the main town square, but even with only the street lamps and the light from storefronts illuminating the town, he immediately felt as though he'd stepped onto the set of Footloose…or Mermaids…or Gremlins. It's quaintness was a little alarming, but at the same time oddly comforting.

He spotted what looked like a diner on a street corner and parked his bike across the street, carrying his helmet under his arm as he walked into the building with the oddly misleading sign 'Williams Hardware'. He glanced around as he walked in, taking note of the scattered clusters of customers. As he wandered into the diner towards the counter, he noticed as people glanced up at him, taking a moment to evaluate the out-of-towner before returning to their meals and conversations. Shawn was used to this by now, it happened in every small town he'd been in. Besides, it wasn't like he ever minded attention; he typically sought it out in fact.

He reached the counter and sat right in front of a glass display case of donuts, a very good place to sit in his opinion. He picked up a menu that was tucked next to a napkin dispenser and started glancing through it.

A gruff looking man in a flannel shirt made his way over and pulled out his order pad "What'll you have?" He questioned, only glancing up enough to know that the guy was clearly not from Stars Hollow and that usually indicated an annoyingly picky or slow customer.

"Hmm…I'll have a hamburger with extra pineapple, barbeque sauce, cheese, and guacamole." Shawn said and glanced back at the menu "Oh and cheese fries with bacon…and a pineapple smoothie."

Luke stared at the guy for a moment, waiting for an apology and some sort of real order. When the guy looked up expectantly, he realized he was serious. "This is a diner. We don't have pineapple, guacamole or smoothies."

"No pineapple?" Shawn asked incredulously "But how do you make burgers without pineapple? It's like having a Japadog with no bun!"

"A Japa-what?" Luke asked and furrowed his brow in confusion "What are you…did Taylor send you? I swear if he's trying to make me change my menu…"

Shawn sighed because clearly Japadogs were also not on the menu. "I'll just have a cheeseburger and chili cheese fries" he said as he placed the menu back. The diner guy nodded and went to place the order.

The bell over the door jingled as a new customer came in and leaned against the counter a couple stools down from Shawn. "Luuuke I need coffee, preferably in IV form. Or in one of those giant martini glasses they have in bars…ooh or-"

Luke cut her off as he walked in from the kitchen "Why would I have a giant martini glass?" He questioned, not even bothering to get her coffee yet since she was clearly still on some crazy caffeine high.

"Are you pretending I don't know your secret plans to transform this place into a late night jazz club where Rat Pack impersonators will come and sing and Miss Patty and Babette will dance on the counter and flirt with the pianist." Lorelai rambled on as she had a whole visual now and was fully intending on sharing every detail with Luke.

Shawn had overheard the rambling story and couldn't help but picture this place being a jazz club. He glanced over in amusement to see who was providing this bit of entertainment and he had to do a double take. The woman standing next to him was beautiful; she had striking blue eyes and dark hair that fell in gentle curls. He tried not to stare, but he couldn't help it; after all, he was Shawn Spencer and he wasn't exactly known for disliking women.

"Thanks for giving me that image" Luke grumbled with a poorly hidden smirk as he crossed his arms. "But sorry, no giant martini glasses yet. Why do you need coffee anyway? I mean, you are planning on sleeping at some point in your life, right?"

"Bah who needs sleep?" She said with a dismissive wave of her hand as she settled herself down on a stool.

Shawn sensed this was a good time to chime in and make his introduction to the gorgeous woman next to him…of course it had to be a very Shawn Spencer introduction. "Jordan Cochran didn't need sleep and she was very productive…she invented stuff and resurfaced the floor of her room instead of sleeping."

Luke looked at the guy like he'd grown another head while Lorelai glanced over with a look of curiosity mixed with concentration. "Real Genius" she finally said and grinned at the guy who must have been an out-of-towner because she definitely would have noticed a guy making Real Genius references before.

Shawn beamed back at her, more than thrilled she'd gotten the very obscure reference "Shawn Spencer" he said extending his hand "President of the Val Kilmer fan club…pre-The Island of Dr. Moreau."

"Batman Forever made the cut?" She questioned with a look of fake shock.

Shawn shrugged at that and held up his fingers with only a little space in between "By this much…because he's still Batman. And also Jim Carrey was in it."

Lorelai grinned at that "I think you're being too kind with that call…although you are president of the fan club so that's understandable." They both sat there smiling at each other before she realized she hadn't introduced herself "I'm Lorelai Gilmore, Stars Hollow executive chair of all things pop culture."

"What a coincidence, I run the Santa Barbara branch…I didn't see you at the convention this year" he joked back, more at ease than he'd felt in a while. In fact ever since he'd left home, he hadn't found anyone who got this many of his references. Even Gus was usually slower than this.

"I was going through a Bender phase then, I made the mistake of watching The Breakfast Club the week before so the whole idea of a convention seemed cliché and made me extra angsty."

Luke had poured her coffee and was bringing the Shawn guy his meal, but he'd caught most of their conversation and was utterly confused. "Please tell me you're related" he said to Lorelai, unable to grasp the idea that there were other people as unusual as her out in the world.

"No, thank god" Shawn said before he could stop himself, he saw Lorelai glance over at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, obviously privy to the meaning behind his answer. "Because…there's no way I could tolerate being related to someone who disses Val's work in Batman" he said to cover up what he had really meant. He tried to find a way to change the topic and glanced down at his food "Are you sure there's no pineapple back there?"

Luke had caught on to what the guy had meant by 'no, thank god' to being related to Lorelai. He wasn't surprised; pretty much every guy who met Lorelai was head over heels for her within the first five minutes of talking to her, it wasn't like he had been any exception. He scowled at the guy and shook his head "No pineapple." He repeated and went to get the guy's chili fries.

"Pineapple on a hamburger?" Lorelai questioned as she looked at Shawn, suddenly she was starving and she snatched a fry from the plate Luke set down before looking up at him pleadingly "Luke, I want a cheeseburger with pineapple!"

Luke rolled his eyes and glanced at the guy "Great, now you got her whining about it" he glanced back at her with a stern look "Lorelai, you don't eat cheeseburgers with pineapple. You've never eaten a cheeseburger with pineapple, and if this guy had never brought it up you never would have wanted a cheeseburger with pineapple."

"True, but now thanks to my new friend Shawn, I have a dire longing to have one. Please Luke! I'm sure Taylor has pineapple, you can go and cut one up and make me and Shawn very happy." She gave him her most adorable pout, knowing it had about an 86% success rate on him.

"What are the chances you'll stop whining about this if I tell you I'm not getting a damn pineapple?"

"Zero" she said, making a zero with her hand as she stole another fry from Shawn's plate. "I'll also eat all your other customers food and annoy them so that you have a room full of complainers and end up with no tips."

Luke threw up his hands in exasperation and then headed towards the door.

Shawn watched in amusement and raised an eyebrow at her "Well that was certainly effective…are you two dating?"

"Me and Luke?" She questioned with a snort "No" she shook her head at that "We're just friends…well and he's my coffee supplier. But I'm single." She blushed a bit as she added that in because it didn't sound as subtle as she'd been hoping.

A smile tugged at Shawn's lips as he heard that and saw her blush, it was apparent the Spencer charm was having an effect. "So Lorelai" he started, deciding to let the single thing go so as not too embarrass her, although he couldn't deny he was very happy to hear it, "Where exactly am I?"

"Luke's Diner" she answered him with a slightly confused smile, she wondered if that was some sort of philosophical question or if he had short-term memory loss.

He laughed at that and shook his head "I gathered as much from the menu…although the sign outside does confuse things a bit. But I was wondering more about this town…I've been in small towns all over America but this one seems pretty unique. In the short time I've been talking to you, everyone in here has been talking about us and two people have come in just to get a better look at me. Oh and one guy has walked by that window four times and has pressed his face against the window twice…although I'm not entirely sure he's watching us."

Lorelai smiled in amusement and glanced over to see Kirk walk by again "Oh that's just Kirk, Luke threw him out today because he sent his grilled cheese back three times so he's been casing the place ever since, waiting until Luke's in a good enough mood to let him back in." She watched as Shawn gave an understanding nod "But answer me this…how did you notice all that, am I that boring?"

Shawn chuckled and shook his head "No, definitely not." He grinned at her to erase any fears she might have had about that "I just have…a gift I guess. I notice and remember pretty much everything. The memory I got from my mom but my dad was the one who forced me to take in everything, he wanted me to be some sort of super cop." He shrugged, knowing he was getting a little too personal and going to a bitter place so he decided to ease up a bit. "While I would be one helluva cop, I think I'd be just a little too sexy for the uniform. I want to be respected, not ogled."

Lorelai laughed at that and couldn't help but envision him in a cop uniform…yeah that was definitely a sexy visual. Her gaze drifted down his body for a moment before returning to his face, she blushed as she noticed the smirk on his face and she knew she'd been caught.

Luke walked back in with a pineapple and slammed it on the counter "You're paying for this and for the therapy I'm gonna need for that run in with Taylor" he growled and pointed an accusing finger at Lorelai.

"Well I'm definitely not paying if you plan on serving it to me in that form…also I have no burger yet." She pointed out and pushed the pineapple back towards him.

"I'll pay" Shawn piped up, the words sounding very foreign to his ears "For the pineapple and her burger…someone's first pineapple burger is a special experience, it's my treat." He explained to her, hoping to make a good impression on her, besides he could put it on Gus's card.

Lorelai smiled appreciatively at him for that "Well thank you…I should try new things more often" she said and turned to Luke who was cutting up the pineapple "Luke, you should attract handsome out-of-towners more often."

"They're not my type" Luke responded dryly as he picked up the burger from Cesar and added pineapple to burger and handed Shawn some pineapple for his burger.

"He does have a sense of humor!" Shawn said in surprise "Sort of a Dr. House type of humor" he noted and eagerly added pineapple to his burger.

"Hmm true" Lorelai said with a nod "But he walks much better than House and has no pill addiction…that I'm aware of. Luke, are you secretly hiding an addiction to vicodin? It could make you a bit funnier in a tragic way."

Luke rolled his eyes and walked off to go help other customers.

"I'll take that as a maybe" she said to Shawn as she picked up her burger and took a bite. Her eyes widened as she chewed and she looked over at Shawn in amazement. "This is incredible" she gushed as her tongue darted out to catch the drops of pineapple juice that had escaped during her first bite.

"Told you so" he said with a smirk as he watched her lick her lips in fascination. She was by far the most interesting woman he'd met in a long time and definitely one of the most beautiful. He silently thanked his stomach for going crazy earlier and forcing him to make a detour in Stars Hollow. Thinking of his stomach made him remember how hungry he was and he eagerly took a bite of his own burger. They ate in near silence as they savored the taste of their burgers.

As soon as they were done, they exchanged a happy look with each other; both were full and content in each other's company. Even though they had finished their meals, neither wanted to leave and they especially didn't want the other to leave.

Lorelai could tell this guy was passing through town and that as soon as he left the diner, he'd be gone from Stars Hollow for good. She couldn't bear the thought of losing a pop culture aficionado so soon and decided to stall for time. "So why are you in Stars Hollow anyway?"

Shawn grinned at that, relieved to have a topic he could spend some time on. "Well I had to stop in The Chat Corner for some shopping, I've been hitting up every cat boutique on the East Coast." He joked and then shrugged "Also I was hungry" he answered truthfully "I left New York and have just been traveling north, I was planning on stopping in Hartford for the night, but was starving before I got there."

Lorelai shuttered at the mention of Hartford and all the negative associations she had with the city. "Well I'm glad you chose Stars Hollow instead, Hartford is a breeding ground for Satanic activity."

"Really? Huh it seemed so innocent" he said with a look of mock alarm, he could obviously tell she had some aversion to something or someone in Hartford, but he wasn't going to pry.

She nodded and then glanced up at him again "So if you're just stopping in Hartford, what's the final destination?"

He shrugged at that "I have no idea, I was just planning on driving until I found someplace to settle for a while." He explained before realizing he needed to give a little back of background. "My dad and I aren't really close" he started and looked away for a moment "So after I graduated high school, I packed a bag, got on my bike and left home. I've been sort of aimlessly traveling ever since. I've been home since then, well Santa Barbara anyway, but I just stay with my best friend Gus. Sometimes I'm just there for a holiday but other times for a couple months when I just need some familiarity, ya know? But I really like traveling, I've been to every state besides Hawaii and Alaska, and I've been to Mexico and Canada. This is my third time on the East Coast, but I've never explored Connecticut much. Although there's not a lot to explore…"

"Hey!" Lorelai protested at that with a little pout "There's a lot in Connecticut…" the words sounded lame even to her and she gave a small smile. She was sure Connecticut had to seem very boring compared to everything he had seen, she was pretty curious to hear more about his travels. She'd always wanted to travel more, but of course having a kid at 16 really put a damper on those plans. She and Rory would travel one day though, and that would be even better than going alone. Although this hot loner biker traveling the country thing was really working for Shawn.

"There is" he said with a nod, really believing his words ever since he'd come across Stars Hollow. "I just meant land wise…Connecticut's about the size of a city in California."

She laughed at that and leaned a bit closer as she got lost in thought "I've always wanted to go to California…not just to meet all of my heroes, well okay mostly because of that, but also because I've heard there's lots of towns just filled with people who will appreciate my weirdness."

Shawn laughed at that "This is true…although this town doesn't seem too normal…" he said as he cast a glance at the window where Kirk was now just full on pressed against the glass, salivating as he stared at people's food.

Lorelai smiled and gave a half shrug "I suppose we are a little bit quirky here" she said and gave him her cutesy grin which got her the desired reaction she had hoped for, Shawn swallowed roughly before offering a dazed smile in return. He lost his train of thought for a moment before she prompted him to continue and he went on telling her about places he'd seen and the past few weeks he'd spent in New York.

They were so caught up in talking, they didn't realize when they were the only ones left in the diner and were oblivious to the amount of noise Luke made as he cleaned up around them in order to get them to take the hint. Eventually, he gave up and walked up to them "Time to leave" he muttered gruffly as he waved them towards the door.

"What? It's only…10!" Lorelai said in surprise as she glanced at her watch and shot Luke an apologetic look "How did it get that late?"

"I blame the DeLorean…there must have been some sort of time travel involved." Shawn said as he glanced around the now deserted diner, wondering how they could have missed everyone else leaving.

"Back to the Future" Luke shouted before Lorelai could, he was proud to have finally gotten one of this guy's absurd 80's references.

Lorelai tried not to laugh at the way Luke had shouted out the movie like he was competing against her on a game show. She wasn't even going to say that one, she thought it had been a given. "Sorry to stay so late Luke" she said as she got up and Shawn put enough money on the table for the food and a very good tip.

"I'll walk you home" Shawn offered as they stepped outside, not ready to say goodbye yet.

Lorelai smiled at his offer but then realized the walk home would be the last time she saw him…unless "What are your plans for sleeping tonight?" She asked before realizing how terribly that was phrased, and not just grammatically. "Not that I'm offering…_that_. That would be wrong on so many levels. But I'm not repulsed by the idea either, I mean you're very…um and I ya know…" she was rambling and making a fool of herself and took a deep breath. "I run an Inn, so if you're looking for a place to stay for the night, I'd be more than happy to check you into a room at a decent rate" she said with a smile, wishing she'd led with that instead of mumbling like an idiot about spending the night with him.

Shawn chuckled at her adorable rambling, a bit off put that she hadn't been offering, but then more than flattered when she mentioned she wasn't repulsed by the idea. The inn thing got his attention and he nodded enthusiastically "That sounds great, thank you" he told her with a genuinely happy smile "But I'm still going to walk you home after I get checked in, I don't want you to walk home alone."

She let out a snort at that before smiling because the offer was sweet "That must be the city boy in you talking, Stars Hollow is the safest town on the planet. The last crime to occur here at night was when Kirk slept-walked naked and gave little old lady Weston an almost heart attack from the sight."

He laughed at that and grimaced a bit at the visual of that "Well I'm glad it's safe, but I'm the kid of a cop…I'd feel better if you let me."

Lorelai accepted his offer with a nod "Then I'd appreciate that, thanks." They stood still for a moment, perfectly happy to smile foolishly at each other in the middle of the town square. Eventually she got a hold of herself and started to lead him off towards the Inn, but was stopped when a hand was suddenly wrapped around her own, gently tugging her back. Her breath hitched as she turned back to look at him, wondering if he was about to make a move.

"My bike…" he said as he nodded his head towards his mode of transportation carrying his only possessions. "We should probably take it with us." He said with a slight smirk, not letting go of her hand quite yet.

"Oh…yeah, right." She said as she glanced over where he had indicated "That would explain the helmet you have with you."

He chuckled at that and shrugged as he led her over to his motorcycle "Well I could also just really like ramming my head into things…but I think having a motorcycle is a little bit sexier reason to wear a helmet."

"I'm with you on that one" she said as she approached the motorcycle and straddled it, she clutched the handlebars and gave him her best 'bad girl' stare "How do I look?"

He grinned broadly as he took in the visual before him and it took all of his willpower not to lean in and kiss her. "Pretty damn hot" he replied honestly and then placed his helmet on her head. He found that the bulky barrier took away some of the temptation because he couldn't kiss her even if he wanted to. He placed his hands on her hips and slid her back a bit before getting on the bike in front of her "Hold on" he instructed as he waited to feel her arms securely around him before he started the engine.

Lorelai's heart was racing at an alarming rate and she really hoped he couldn't feel it, even though it was very possible seeing how close she was pressed up against him. It wasn't that she was nervous…not of the bike ride anyway, but every flirty comment and gentle touch exchanged between them set her skin on fire and made her feel like she was back in high school. She just hoped she didn't start twirling her hair and giggling like a teenager. As they made their way through the town streets, she focused on directing him to the Inn and controlling her breathing. She didn't want to think about how close she was pressed against him or how good his stomach felt underneath her hands. When they finally reached their destination, she leaned back and let out a sigh of relief mixed with regret because she already missed being so close to him. She gently tugged off the helmet and handed it back to him, hoping she wasn't blushing because she still found it very gallant he had foregone a helmet for her safety. Granted the Inn wasn't very far, but it was still adorable. "Let's get you checked in" she said with a smile and led the way inside.

Shawn gave her a head start because he was still recovering from the short ride on his bike. Since he'd only brought one helmet on his trip, it had been a while since a woman was on his bike with him. He was sure he'd never been that distracted on his bike before and he didn't know if it was just because of the way Lorelai had been holding him and subtly moving her hand over his stomach or because he'd never felt this attracted to someone in such a short time of knowing them. He shook his head to clear his mind and followed her up the stairs and into the Inn. Lorelai was already behind the counter with another guy who must be some sort of night manager. As soon as he walked in, the two began bickering and trying to get access to the computer before Lorelai cleared her throat and announced loudly "Tobin, don't you have to go check on that thing?"

Tobin gave her a look for that, he'd been confused as to why she'd shown up so late, but of course as soon as he saw the ruggedly attractive man walk in, it had all made sense. He had wanted to get a chance to talk to the new guest and check him in, but Lorelai had fought him over it and resorted to some underhanded measures to do it. "Can I take your bags, sir?" He asked with a cheerful smile as he approached Shawn.

"Uh sure, thanks" Shawn said as he handed him his bag and then walked up to the counter where Lorelai was already busy on the computer.

"So one night then?" Lorelai questioned, trying to keep her voice clear and not sound too hopeful that he would stay longer.

"Yeah" Shawn said with a nod, he'd known from the moment they pulled up that this place was nice and therefore quite pricy. After a month in New York, he didn't have the money to spend an expended period of time here. While he was definitely considering spending more time in Stars Hollow, he would have to find someplace cheaper to do it.

Lorelai gave a curt nodded and stared intently at the screen as she finished making the reservation, trying not to seem upset. She criticized herself for even being the littlest upset that Shawn wasn't staying, after all she'd only known him for a few hours, it was absurd that she was this attached already. She glanced up with a smile and handed him a key "You're in room 7, I'll show you the way" she said before Tobin could pipe up. She discreetly stuck her tongue out at the night manager as she stepped around the counter and led Shawn toward the staircase.

As soon as he got his bag in his room, Shawn turned toward Lorelai "So now time to take you home" he said with a small smile "Don't think you're going to get out of it even after you've wooed me with how nice my room is."

Lorelai chuckled at that "Well I'm glad you like it, but I wouldn't dare get out of it. A handsome suitor must always escort a lady home at the end of the night" she said the last sentence with her best Southern belle impression, which earned a grin from Shawn and an eye roll from Tobin who was still lingering, hoping to get to talk to the handsome guest.

"After you mi'lady" he said with a half bow as he gestured towards the door.

"What a gentleman" she said in the same accent as she fanned herself and led the way out of the room. Tobin caught up to her as she was walking down the stairs "Alright, I know when to admit defeat…that one definitely plays for you team. He already seems quite taken with you, not that I blame him. If I went the other way, I'd have a 'The Way We Were' type of crush on you." He whispered to her, hoping to get back on her good side. In his scheme to get Michele's job, he wasn't above resorting to flattering her and convincing her the attractive guest was into her.

"Aww thanks Tobin…although that reference just proves why you're on Team Rainbow" She whispered back with a smile, surprised by his change in mood; not that she minded the compliments.

Tobin laughed at that and waved the duo off before returning to work.

After a quick discussion, Shawn and Lorelai decided on walking back to her house since they were both recovering from the first bike ride. Lorelai pointed out some of her favorite places on the walk home and they had a competition to see who could make the most pop culture references, as they came up organically of course, they couldn't just compulsively shout out movie references.

By the time they reached her house, they were both laughing and Lorelai was grinning so much that her face actually hurt. "Well this is my house" she gestured and turned back to him "I would invite you in, but…it's late" she finished with a shrug and glanced down. 'And I have a 16 year old daughter who's probably in bed' she mentally added, not sure why Rory hadn't come up yet. She was never embarrassed to mention her daughter, quite the opposite; she always had a feeling of pride when she brought up her genius, Harvard-bound daughter. But with Shawn…she was almost afraid of scaring him off. She mentally kicked herself for how stupid that was and then realized she'd been looking down for quite a while and she looked up at him.

Shawn hadn't expected to be invited in, but he found that he still didn't want to say goodbye, and furthermore he didn't know how to say goodbye. "Right, it's really late" he said with a nod and glanced at her house and then back at her as he tried to figure what to say. He noticed she was staring down and thought maybe she wasn't too happy about him leaving either. "I'll see you tomorrow?" He questioned as he moved a little bit closer.

"Yes! I mean sure…I'll be at the Inn, for work…tomorrow at 8" she clarified and smiled shyly, wondering why he was making her so nervous. "If you're gonna leave Stars Hollow bright and early the least I can do is send you off with a fabulous breakfast from our chef Sookie."

"Breakfast" he said excitedly, not sure if the thought of food or the company he'd be sharing it with was making him more excited. He picked up on the not-so-subtle hint about his plans she'd slipped in there "Although I might feel bad if you go all out for my send off, I wasn't planning on leaving quite so soon."

"Oh yeah?" She asked in surprise, excitement and hope flitting across her face.

"Yeah…this town is pretty great. It's like Springfield meets Quahog, with a little bit of Bikini Bottoms thrown in."

She laughed at that, not bothering to hide her pleased grin "Wow we need to put that slogan on a bumper sticker…it will definitely draw the animation enthusiasts."

"I claim copyright on that," he said with a grin and moved a bit closer "So I'll see you tomorrow then?" He watched as she nodded at him and he softly smiled at that "Goodnight Lorelai" he murmured as he leaned in and gently kissed her before leaving to go back to the Inn, hoping he hadn't been too forward.

Lorelai stood there for a full minute after he left, still surprised by the goodnight kiss, but not wanting to risk moving before she memorized everything about it. With a small smile, she eventually turned and went into her house.

"And where have you been?" Rory greeted her from the living room couch as soon as Lorelai walked in the door.

"Oh you know, just hooking on the corner by Doose's for your future college tuition money." She replied as she put her bag down and plopped down on the couch by her daughter, unable to keep the cheerful grin from her place.

"Eww don't say 'hooking' and 'Doose' in the same sentence ever again!" Rory protested and made a face, unable to get the visual of her mother and Taylor out of her head.

"I didn't say with Taylor Doose! Wow your mind goes to a dirty place" Lorelai scolded and laughed at how traumatized her daughter looked.

Rory scowled and then looked at her mother "Seriously, it's almost midnight and you weren't answering your phone, I was really worried!"

"Sorry hon" Lorelai said with a guilty expression as she reached over to stroke through her daughter's hair "I didn't mean to worry you, I should have checked my phone…I forgot I put in on silent earlier today when I was in a meeting and I just haven't looked at in a while…" She trailed off as she thought about Shawn and grinned again.

"Did you do something slutty?" Rory questioned, knowing that her mom's current level of happiness was quite rare.

"No! Well…no." Lorelai confirmed and shook her head, but then decided to confide in her daughter "I met someone" she said giddily as she tucked her hair behind her ear and turned to face Rory.

"Really? Where?" Rory asked, she didn't think her mom had left Stars Hollow today, but she had been gone for quite a while.

"In Luke's" she said with a smile as she recalled the way they met "Luke was nagging me about ordering coffee and not sleeping or something like that when this hot mysterious guy at the counter made a Real Genius reference." She giggled and looked over at her daughter, waiting for some feedback.

"80s movie reference huh? That's a pretty great way to get your attention. But what's this mystery guy doing in Stars Hollow? Does he have a name or do you just go with the anonymous 'John' for your clients?"

Lorelai gasped and smacked her daughter's leg "Uh! I don't like what you're implying, of course I know his name…his name is Shawn." Her lips curved into a smile even just saying his name "He's on this epic tour of the country on his motorcycle…he told me a lot about the places he's visited. He has some really great stories."

Rory noticed how her mom was talking about this guy, she was pretty sure she wouldn't have even been this excited if she had met Mel Brooks. Her giddiness was pretty contagious and Rory couldn't help but smile back "A motorcycle guy huh? Like James Dean? Or Dad?" She brought up the last part cautiously, hoping this guy wasn't just being used as a Christopher substitute.

"Very James Dean" Lorelai confirmed and then shook her head "Not like your dad…Christopher is a rich kid with a bike, it's just one of those things that doesn't really fit. He's like those doctors who get motorcycles during a mid life crisis. But Shawn…" she trailed off as she remembered being on his bike with him "He looks really good on a motorcycle, he's got this rugged look to him and it's just…perfect."

Rory let out a little sigh of relief that this guy wasn't desired for being Christopher 2.0. "So motorcycle guy who makes pop culture references? I can see why you're so excited."

Lorelai shook her head "You don't even know the half of it kid. He's hot and has a great sense of humor. He's from California, so he's really laid back. Oh and pineapple! He loves pineapple and we bullied Luke into getting us pineapple to put on our burgers, you need to try it Rory, you're gonna love it."

"That sounds kinda gross…I'm sure I'll love it" she replied with a grin but then furrowed her brow as she thought of something "So if he's not from around here…where is he now?"

"At the Inn" Lorelai replied with a mischievous smirk "He'd been planning on going to Hartford for the night before he stopped at Luke's for dinner, and I mentioned that I just so happen to run an Inn in town and I could get him a room for a reasonable rate."

"Ahh clever, put him somewhere you can keep an eye on him and he can't slip out of town."

"Okay, that makes it sound like I built a hole for him in our basement. I'm not Buffalo Bill." She protested with a pout.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it to sound that way. I was just saying kudos for setting up a way for you to see him again."

"But that's not even the best part!" Lorelai said with a grin, her high spirits having already returned "He walked me home and told me he's thinking about staying in Stars Hollow a while!"

"Well look at you" Rory said with an impressed smile "Does the Stars Hollow tourism board know about you? Because you seem to be really good for business…we might need to rethink that whole hooking on the corner business because apparently you draw quite a crowd."

"Mean!" Lorelai protested but then smirked "Although probably true…but still, you're very sassy tonight. I guess I won't tell you what happened at the very end of the night…"

"Do I wanna know?" Rory asked cautiously.

"I already got to the part where he walked me home!" Lorelai cried in disbelief "Do you think I'm gonna end the story with 'and then we had sex in the bushes next to Pierpont with Babette's other gnomes watching'?"

"Oh great, that's almost a worse visual than you and Taylor!" Rory shrieked and tried to think of non-gross things before she was scarred for life.

Lorelai smirked at her daughter's discomfort, glad she was paying for her attitude. "If you hadn't leapt to conclusions, you would have found out that he just kissed me. It was very innocent and sweet." She smiled as she thought back to it and glanced over at her daughter.

Rory returned her smile, although there was a hint of worry behind it. She could tell her mother had already developed a crazy crush on this guy that she'd known less than a day. Rory hadn't even met him but she already knew he lived a life on the road and would only be in town a short while no matter what her mother could fool herself into believing. She just hoped her mom wouldn't be completely crushed when this guy left. "Sounds pretty great." She said cautiously as she looked at her deliriously happy mother.

"It really was" Lorelai said softly and beamed at her daughter before standing up "Alright bed time, you have school tomorrow and I have to actually be up and looking cute by 7:30." She made a face at that realization before heading for the stairs "Goodnight mom, thanks for staying up late to nag me." She teased her daughter as she went up to her room.

"This boy is trouble" Rory muttered to herself, feeling like the real mother in this relationship for what wasn't the first time in her life.

. . . . . . . . .

"Hello?" Gus mumbled sleepily into the phone, too tired to even check the caller ID before he answered it.

"Gus!" Shawn said excitedly, he'd been worried by the fifth ring that his friend wasn't going to answer "You really need to get better at picking up the phone when your best friend calls."

"Shawn?" Gus asked as he yawned and checked at the clock "Is everything okay?"

"Everything's great" Shawn said with a happy grin as he thought over the night's events.

"Then why are you calling me? It has to be nearly 3 am there! It's almost midnight here Shawn, you know I have work in the morning!"

"Work? Oh you mean that pharmaceutical thing…you're still working there?" He asked with a slight frown, that place sounded incredibly dull and he had no idea why his best friend would want to keep going there day after day.

"Still working there? I've only been there for four months, Shawn!" Gus said as he sat up in bed, giving up on the notion that this would be a short call and he could go back to sleep.

"Yeah exactly, four whole months at one job! That's insane!"

"Shawn, why are you calling?" Gus asked bluntly, tired of being lectured about his job.

Shawn grinned again as he remembered why he'd called his friend so late in the first place "I couldn't sleep" he admitted as he glanced around the room at the Inn, her Inn. "I met a girl."

Gus rolled his eyes at that, wishing Shawn could see his obvious exasperation, but he had to settle for making it clear over the phone. "Really? You're calling me because you met a girl? Exactly how many girls have you been with since you began your trip? No scratch that, how many girls have you been with just in the last month?"

Shawn shook his head "No dude, you don't understand. This one's different…she's gorgeous Gus, like really beautiful with these blue eyes…" he trailed off as he got lost for a moment just in the memory of her eyes "And she's funny and loves pop culture almost as much as I do! She not only gets my references but throws em back at me too. She's really something Gus."

Gus frowned slightly at that; it was pretty unusual for Shawn to call just to talk about a girl. Normally it was just some side story to whatever Shawn had really called about, like a labradoodle sighting or a recommendation for some delicious new pineapple dish he had tried. "So you met a girl…" he repeated, not sure where he was going with this "And why did you think I should know about this at 3 in the morning?"

"I told you" Shawn said with an exasperated sigh "I couldn't sleep. I just keep thinking about her, and that leads to wondering how I'm gonna stick around here, where I'm gonna stay and work…and I want the answers now Gus, but it's 3 in the morning and I can't exactly go out and figure these things out right now."

Gus furrowed his brow at that "What are you talking about? You've never worried about that stuff before…you normally just pick a town and all of that seems to work out for you. Why are you so paranoid all of the sudden?"

"Because!" Shawn exclaimed as if it were obvious "It's a small town and I don't know if I'll find something, and then I'll have no reason to stay. And I can't afford to stay at this Inn forever, it's expensive…but it's her Inn, well she runs it anyway, which means I get to see her tomorrow." He grinned again at that.

Gus wasn't sure if Shawn wasn't making sense or if he was just too tired to keep up "Shawn, just calm down, I'm sure everything will work out. You at least have a very wide range of skills by now, I'm sure they'll need you for something."

"You're right" Shawn said with a nod and relaxed into the bed a bit, he always man

aged to find work before. If not through his impressively diverse resume than through his people skills. "Thanks buddy…sorry for waking you up."

Gus nodded and settled back into his bed "No problem, just try not to make it a habit." He paused a moment before adding, "You seem happy."

"I really am" Shawn said with a smile as he thought about Lorelai "Goodnight Gus."

"Night Shawn" his best friend replied before hanging up the phone.

* * *

I hope you liked the first chapter! It would be much appreciated if you reviewed to let me know what you think, whether you loved or hated it. Since I'm writing for a very small audience (I doubt many people will read this) any feedback you have for me would be great! Let me know what you think of the concept, if there's any character interactions you want to see or any other comments you may have!


	2. Breakfast at the Inn

"Roooooory!" Lorelai called from her bedroom as she frantically searched through her closet before turning to the pile of discarded clothes on her bed to sift through the items once again.

"What?" Her daughter yelled back, not willing to take the time to go upstairs when she herself was on a tight schedule and couldn't miss her bus to Chilton.

"Where's my red shirt?" She called out as she stared at the growing pile of unsuitable clothes in front of her.

"What red shirt?" Rory asked as she finished getting dressed and trotted up the stairs to brush her teeth, pausing at the door to her mom's room to look in.

"The really cute sleeveless one that's lacy." Lorelai answered as she returned to the closet to attack it once more.

"Oh. That one." Rory said before disappearing into the bathroom.

"Yes, that one." Lorelai replied with a slight huff, picking up on her daughter's tone "What's wrong with it? It looks great on me."

"It does" Rory agreed as she returned to the room with a toothbrush in her mouth "But…it's more of a date shirt, you don't wanna start off with something that…ya know..."

"What are you implying? That it's a slutty shirt?" Lorelai accused, even though she had to agree, it did usually have quite the effect on men, but that's exactly what she wanted.

Rory decided to dodge that question in an effort to save time and get her mother dressed "Why don't you wear the blue one? The pretty short sleeved one with sheer sleeves. It makes your eyes look more blue, he'll like that." She gave her a reassuring smile before returning to the bathroom.

"Excuse me, I'm not dressing for anyone but myself." Lorelai protested, even though she knew that was a blatant lie. She followed the advice though and went to retrieve the blouse from the pile of clothes. "Okay now what?"

"Really? I have to help with the whole outfit?" She called from the other room before returning a moment later to see her mom holding three different skirts and looking completely lost.

"Wear your grey pants…and save the really short skirt for at least one more day."

Lorelai nodded at that and started to get dressed "I trained you well, daughter!" She called out, giving herself a final look in the mirror and touching up her make up before following her daughter downstairs. "Have a good day at school" she said with a smile, kissing her on the cheek before heading out to her jeep.

"Good luck today…don't do anything too slutty, at least not in public!" Rory called out to her as she hurried off towards the town square.

. . . . . . . . .

Lorelai put down the paper work in front of her to glance around the lobby for what had to be the fifth time in a two-minute span.

"What are you doing?" Michel asked in a bored voice, not taking his attention from the computer as he questioned her.

"What do you mean? I'm filling out these event forms for the Hawthorne wedding because you said you were too busy to do it."

"No…you are supposed to be filling out those forms but instead your head snaps up at every little sound as if you were a dog hearing one of those shrill whistles." Michel explained as he kept clicking away at the computer.

"What? I'm not doing that." She protested, only to turn her head at the sound of voices drifting from the dining room.

"Oh yes, that must be your annoying identical twin doing that, my mistake." He replied sarcastically. "Is there some washed-up celebrity whom I've never heard of checking in today?"

"No" Lorelai replied and put the paper work down again, much too distracted to even attempt to do her work. "I need coffee." She replied as she slipped away from the counter, effectively avoiding having to answer Michel. There was no way she could deal with his annoyingly accurate astuteness in addition to her nerves over when Shawn would make an appearance today, unless she was well caffeinated.

"Sookie, coffee" she called out as she entered the kitchen and headed straight for her favorite appliance.

"He's not down yet?" Her best friend observed as she brought over a coffee mug. The first thing Lorelai had done when she got to work was find Sookie for her first cup of coffee and fill her in on the previous night. Ever since, Sookie had been eagerly awaiting this mystery man's arrival so she could make him and Lorelai her best breakfast special and see if he really was as perfect as her friend had made him seem.

"No" Lorelai replied glumly as she leaned against the counter "And it's so distracting, I can't get anything done and now Michel has picked up on it and is starting an interrogation. Well, an interrogation filled with disdain and delivered with indifference." She sighed and gratefully accepted a cup of coffee from her friend. "I hate that I'm so fixated on him, all I can think about is when he'll come downstairs and if he'll think I look good, or if he's gonna come down with his stuff after realizing how lame Stars Hollow is and just leave."

"I'm sure he's not going to leave" Sookie reassured her friend, mostly because she hoped it was true for her friend's sake. "And of course he'll think you look good. Maybe he's not a morning person…I mean you did describe him as the male version of you."

"That's true" Lorelai mumbled begrudgingly as she sipped her coffee. "I checked the computer three times to make sure he didn't check out when I wasn't at the desk. And I almost sent one of the maids to his room to check to make sure he was still there. How pathetic is that?"

"I think it's sweet" Sookie said with a happy smile "I haven't seen you this worked up over a guy in a long time. He must be something really special."

"He is" Lorelai said with a smile and set the coffee mug down, feeling a bit more optimistic after this pep talk with her ever-cheerful friend. "Thanks for dealing with my craziness. How cliché am I right now? I'm like Kate Hudson in any of her movies, ugh." She shook her head and headed for the door "I promise I'm done with the annoying crap, from now on the independent, confident Lorelai is back…" she trailed off as she opened the door and saw Shawn at the front desk. Her nerves flared up in overdrive as she wondered if he was checking out…and if she'd come out a minute later he might have been gone forever.

She took a deep breath and headed towards the desk, as she approached she could hear Shawn talking to Michel in a hilariously awful fake French accent. She could tell from Michel's face that he was not at all pleased with the interaction.

"Non, where is zee beautiful lady who runs zhis Inn?" Shawn asked in his French accent, knowing that it wasn't helping get on this guy's good side, but he was being a total jerk and was just so much fun to mess with.

"I have no idea what you are talking about. Maybe if you spoke in a less asinine voice I could understand you." Michel replied, his eyes shooting daggers at the obnoxious guest.

"Zhat is no way to talk about your people!" Shawn gasped in mock outrage "I just want to find zee bellissima woman I met yesterday."

Michel huffed at the first part, wondering for what wasn't the first time why he had gotten into the hospitality industry in the first place when all people annoyed him. "Bellissima is Italian you ignorant tourist." He snapped, which caused the idiot to grin for some absurd reason he couldn't comprehend. "And I have no idea who you are talking about, maybe you are in the wrong town."

Lorelai had been lingering for a moment to listen in on the conversation; it had taken a lot of effort to keep herself from laughing at Shawn's horrible accent and how mad it was making Michel. She knew she really liked him for a reason, and not just for him repeatedly complimenting her appearance. Finally, she decided it was time to intervene "Michel, you don't think I'm beautiful?" She asked with a pout as she walked behind the desk, leaning next to the severely irritated Frenchman.

"No, I don't." He replied tersely and turned his attention to the computer "Please deal with this horrible man before I do something I won't regret but that would be very unfortunate for him."

"Dirty!" Lorelai teased before turning to Shawn who was grinning just as much as she was "Hi there" she greeted him, feeling more cheerful than she had all morning.

"Hey yourself" he replied, his bad accent long forgotten. He had initially been a little embarrassed that she had apparently overheard him calling her beautiful, but as he looked at her he decided there was really no better way to describe her. "I was worried you had forgotten about breakfast" he admitted, it was all he'd been able to think about last night and this morning while he got ready.

"Of course not, breakfast is my favorite meal of the morning." She said with a smirk and moved around the desk so she could lead him to the dining room.

"You mean he's not checking out yet?" Michel whined after them.

"Ignore him" Lorelai replied instantly, worried that Michel would put bad ideas in his head.

"Why? It's so much more fun annoying him." He said with a chuckle and glanced around the dining room she led him into "Wow, this place is really nice."

Lorelai was smiling in agreement about the annoying Michel thing; after all it was one of her favorite past times. She glanced around the room when she commented on it and then looked back at him as she sat down at a table by the window "Thanks, I mean I didn't have a lot to do with designing it or anything…but this Inn is like a second home to me."

"You've been working here a long time?" He questioned, assuming that's why she was so attached to the place.

"About 16 years" she admitted with a small smile, thinking back to the day when Mia had taken a chance on a scared girl with no work experience. "I started out as a maid and worked my way up."

"That's about as far away from my work ethic as you can get" he chuckled and took her curious expression as a cue to explain "I give myself no real opportunity to advance in a career, I'm rarely at any job more than a couple months. It's really inspiring what you've done, you're a real success story." He grinned at her, impressed by how she worked her way up to manager of the Inn.

"Well I admire your work approach too…I sometimes wish I'd had the opportunity to explore other jobs, maybe I have some secret skills I'm unaware of…like I could be the best surgeon in the world and all these people are dying out there because I'm not saving their lives…or I could be really great at engineering roller coasters."

He laughed at the two very different career choices "I have no doubt you'd be amazing at either of those." He leaned a bit closer and gave her a charming smile that made her heart beat just a little bit faster.

"Speaking of amazing…" she started, preparing to have some serious flirty banter with the handsome out-of-towner when her best friend suddenly materialized by her side.

"Hi, I'm Sookie St. James" the chef announced in her usual peppy tone as she checked out the guy her friend had been gushing about all morning. "I'm the head chef here and I just like to make the rounds of the dining room sometimes, get a feel for what hungry customers want." She explained to try and justify her sudden appearance at the table "But while I'm here, I can just take your order." She suggested as if it just occurred to her and she hadn't been eagerly anticipating his arrival all morning.

Lorelai narrowed her eyes at her friend, she knew Sookie was very opinionated on her food and would judge Shawn based on whatever he chose; if he picked the traditional breakfast platter, he was boring, if he picked an omelet, he would insult her by picking something too easy. She was about to speak up to order for both of them so her friend couldn't overanalyze him and form an opinion before she even knew him when suddenly she heard Shawn talking.

"If you're the head chef, then why should we decide what to order? You know what's best." He said with the charming, butterfly-inducing smile that Lorelai had mentally termed 'the Shawn smile'…she'd come up with a better name for it later.

Lorelai was stunned by such a perfect answer and glanced over when she felt a death grip on her arm to see her best friend practically bursting with excitement.

"You're right, I do! I'll be back." Sookie said before scurrying back to the kitchen to make their breakfast.

Shawn chuckled at that and turned to Lorelai "You guys are close?" He stated more than asked, he wasn't kidding when he said he was very observant. He'd picked up on the way the two women had acted around each other.

"She's my best friend, well besides my…uh Rory." Lorelai said, surprised to hear herself back out of using the term 'daughter', she mentally kicked herself for being so stupid and weird about mentioning that she had a kid.

Shawn picked up on that awkward transition at the end of her sentence and wondered what she'd been about to say. "Your boyfriend?" He asked, trying not to sound disappointed when he was really just irritated with himself, of course she wasn't single, she was beautiful and smart and successful and way too good for him…

She tried not to laugh at that and just shook her head in amusement "No definitely not…Rory's a girl, and before you ask, she's not my girlfriend either."

His face lit up at that and he grinned happily, not caring to figure out what their relationship was as long as they weren't dating. "Well good, I mean that's uh…good." He said and then frowned again "But, I mean do you…?"

She smirked slightly at that, glad that when she'd mentioned she was single yesterday, it hadn't been as obvious and awkward as she had thought. "Do I what?" She asked innocently, really enjoying how flustered he was getting trying to figure out her relationship status.

He glared at her for that, knowing she was just messing with him now. "Do you think my wife will mind that we're having breakfast together?" He shot back at her, just to tease her.

Her eyes widened for a moment before she caught on to the fact he was just messing with her. She glanced around, as if worried about prying eyes "I don't think she'll mind about breakfast…but maybe about what comes after breakfast…"

His grin turned wolfish at that, knowing she was playing along and not really implying anything was going to happen. "After breakfast huh? How late is check out exactly? And by that I mean how much longer do I have my room…?"

She smirked at that, not entirely sure if they were still jokingly bantering or flirting for real, she didn't get a chance to carry it on to find out though because Sookie was suddenly at their table again. She was carrying three plates and two waiters behind her were carrying over more.

"I didn't know what was best, or what you want, so I made everything!" Her best friend explained excitedly as she pointed out various dishes that were being set down.

"This looks great Sook" Lorelai said with a slight smile, she was very happy about the food, but not so happy about the terrible timing her friend was having today.

"This is incredible!" Shawn agreed, his eyes wide as he took in all the gourmet plates of food on their table, he'd already sampled the pancakes and sausage and it tasted even better than it looked.

"I'm so glad you like it!" Sookie exclaimed happily, standing by to watch for a moment before Lorelai prodded her with a fork to get her to leave them alone again.

. . . . . . . . .

"Oh man, I don't think I've ever been this full in my whole life. I feel like Bruce after he finished that cake in _Matilda._" Shawn groaned as he leaned back in his chair.

Lorelai let out a chuckle at the reference but then cringed because being reminded of food was not good at the moment. She had initially tried to be ladylike and only take small bites of healthy-ish foods, but Shawn had berated her for doing that. At one point, he tried to force feed her big bites of pancakes before she gave in and slipped into her normal eating habits and consumed large amounts of everything completely unhealthy and delicious. She'd expected Shawn to be grossed out at some point by the amount of French toast drowned in syrup she'd devoured, but he had been very encouraging and eaten as much, if not more than her. She'd never met a guy who equaled her appetite and desire for junk food, and she'd never been this happy after a date-like meal before.

After Shawn had recovered a bit from his food coma, he decided it was time to broach the subject he'd been trying to slip into conversation all morning. "So, I think I'm gonna stick around here for a while…"

"Oh god, I'm with ya. I can't even think about getting up yet." She said, completely misinterpreting what he meant as she reached for her coffee cup, which the waiter had fortunately kept very full during their whole meal.

"That's not…well I mean, I'm with you there, but I meant stick around Stars Hollow."

"You are?" She asked, her attention snapping over to him. She was glad he hadn't had a change of heart since he'd mentioned that last night.

"I just need to find some sort of job and a place to stay…probably someplace a little less nice than here, unless of course you know of someone looking to hire a CEO of a multimillion dollar company."

She laughed at that and shook her head "I heard Bill Gates is looking to switch places with a drifter…oh no wait that was a weird dream I had after watching Trading Places last week." She took a sip of coffee as she seriously pondered what he had mentioned, the job part, not the CEO opening.

Normally, she would refer people looking for work to Miss Patty who always knew everything going on in town. She didn't think it was wise to send Shawn to Patty though, she was afraid she'd never see him again because he'd be employed by Patty herself to do menial work around the dance studio, probably without a shirt so she could enjoy the view. As much as she wouldn't blame Patty for that, she liked Shawn and didn't want to drive him away from Stars Hollow. So sending him to Miss Patty to ask about jobs wasn't an option…she tried to think if she'd heard of any available jobs around town. Taylor needed a new cashier at Doose's…and sending him to Taylor would ensure he was packed and headed out of town before dinner. She could ask Kirk to give up a few of his jobs…but she was a bit afraid how that conversation would go down, probably with Kirk telling her some sob story about how he can't afford to lose any of the salaries he earns and guilt tripping her out of money. She sighed and then suddenly a great idea sprang into mind and she grinned at him. "I actually have a perfect solution…to everything."

"Yeah?" He asked in surprise, he hadn't expected to have everything figured out so soon, but he wasn't complaining about it.

"Well, we could really use some extra help around the Inn, especially in the off hours. In small towns it's hard to find people who are willing to do work outside of the typical 9-5 hours. The pay won't be great, but there's this old shed around back that works as housing and you could live there for free…as long as you don't mind sharing the space with some yard equipment.

Shawn was grinning ecstatically at the offer: getting to work and live free of charge at her Inn where he was guaranteed to see her every day? If she told him that as a side perk of the job he got to have sex with her too, he would have known for sure he'd died and gone too heaven. He realized he was still just grinning like an idiot and he would have to say something sooner or later…and sooner would be best before she changed her mind. "That's perfect, are you sure it's okay?"

"Um hello, in case you haven't realized it yet, I run this Inn, whatever I say goes. And I say it's fine by me." She smiled back at him, pleased that he was so enthusiastic about the offer and didn't think she was being creepy by trying to keep him at the Inn. She had a flashback to Rory implying she was Buffalo Bill from Silence of the Lambs last night, but quickly brushed away the comparison. She wasn't keeping him locked up and she definitely wasn't going to make a dress from his skin, she was merely helping out a friend. A very attractive and awesome friend who she didn't want to meet too many other single women around town.

"Well then thank you, I really appreciate it." Shawn said and gave her that smile of his that sent her heartbeat into overdrive.

"Don't mention it" she said with a dismissive wave of her hand, suddenly feeling way too warm in the dining room "I can take you outside and show you where you'll be staying if you'd like."

"Great" Shawn said excitedly as he got up, "It's not by a lake, is it?"

"Uhm, well not a lake, but it's next to a pond…why do you ask?" She questioned as she led him outside onto the back porch.

"Well, you know when you're a kid and you watch movies you shouldn't watch, but you do it anyway? Seven-year-old me thought it was a great idea to watch Friday the 13th right before I went to Camp Tikihama for the first time…I don't think I slept the whole week…any of the years I ever went there."

Lorelai busted out laughing at that confession, picturing little Shawn walking around looking like a zombie from sleep deprivation. "Aww…if I'd been a camp counselor I would have snuck you some coffee."

"If you were a camp counselor, I would have weaseled my way into staying in your cabin." He replied with a smirk.

She couldn't help but return the smirk "Well I'll give you my cell number, so if you're afraid when you're in there, you can call and I'll help make you feel better." She replied with a bit of a dirty undertone to her words. Before he could reply though, she unlocked the door to the shed and led him inside. "Here it is" she announced, a bit of pride seeping into her smile as she glanced around. She really had done a pretty good job sprucing it up all those years ago.

"It's nice" he said, a bit surprised, he'd expected a dingy room filled with garden equipment. Apart from the garden hose and various tools lying around, it was bright and cheery "It's kind of…girly" he observed as he glanced around "Is this some sort of spare guest room in case of emergency?"

Lorelai shook her head at that as she went over straightened the curtain that sectioned of the bathtub from the rest of the room. "No, I um, well I actually used to live here. It looked a lot more like a typical shed back then, but I think I made it look pretty nice."

Shawn was surprised by that confession and glanced around trying to picture her living in here. "You did a really nice job" he complimented her "So do you also like seeking out unusual places to live? It's kind of a hobby of mine…once I lived in a Color Me Mine studio, ooh and another time I lived in an old firehouse. "

"Really did it still have the pole?" She asked curiously and then slightly blushed as she realized the other way poles could be used "I know…dirty" she called herself off and threw her hands up. "Not how I meant it though." She smiled at him as she tried to straighten up things around the shed. "As much as I'd love to say I seek out odd places to live on purpose, it was actually out of necessity."

She paused and glanced down for a moment, she was almost afraid to go into the story of her past because she didn't want to scare him by getting too personal. However, she remembered how he'd gotten personal last night when talking about his father, whom he didn't seem to have the best relationship. Somehow she knew he'd understand and even somehow oddly empathize with her past, at least the part about the strained relationship with her parents.

She cleared her throat and glanced back up to see him looking at her expectantly but also patiently. "Well I guess if you're gonna hear about the whirlwind chain of events that led to me living in a shed, it needs to start with me explaining that from about the age of two on, my parents and I never got along. We just have a very different outlook on life. They thought a proper daughter should have a coming out party and then marry her escort who of course is on the fast track to being a lawyer or CEO or something. And then you have his babies and stay at home and plan socials and charity events while a team of nannies raise your children and you don't see them again until you can show them off at your fancy parties." She paused to take a breath and realized she was seriously ranting. "Anyway, that was not my plan for how my life would turn out…I was gonna start an all girl band or be a drifter in Europe and marry an Irish musician, something awesome and not Emily and Richard approved. While I didn't get to travel or anything else I'd planned I managed to encounter their disapproval in a big way…by getting pregnant at 16. I was so scared but mostly relieved that they didn't actually kill me, so I followed their rules for a while, but I suddenly saw my dreams of independence slipping away and being replaced with my parents' Stepford-esque plans for me. Well, I suppose their altered plans…living in their house and marrying Christopher, the baby daddy, and then after he'd worked his way up in my father's company we'd buy our own McMansion and evolve into snobs like them." She sighed and shook her head "Sorry, I know I must be boring you."

"No" Shawn said immediately as he moved over to sit by her on the table she was leaning against "I'm riveted now, I need to find out how McMansion turned into shed."

She chuckled at that, glad she hadn't scared him away yet. "Right, well obviously I didn't follow my parents plans for my future. After I gave birth to Rory, my daughter" she clarified, grinning a bit at his reaction as he connected the dots.

"Rory the daughter, not the boyfriend" he said with a nod, a bit embarrassed now at what he'd assumed earlier.

"Yes, Rory the daughter" she replied and smiled at him, glad he wasn't too alarmed by the news that she had a daughter. "I stayed at my parent's house for a while with her, but I couldn't have her grow up in the same environment I did. And I know it sounds awful because I had what many would consider an ideal childhood, my parents bought me everything a child should want and they just wanted the best for me. But they didn't know _what_ was best for me." She paused again and ran a hand through her hair as she moved around the room, tidying things up here and there. "I needed to get out of there, to get the independence I had always dreamed of and to give Rory everything I wanted for her and for me. So I left, but I didn't have anywhere to go and barely any money. I ended up here and fate led me to Mia, she owns this Inn." She explained and a soft smile crossed her face "She's my guardian angel, she took me in, gave me my first job and let me and Rory live out here. Eventually I made enough money that I could buy a house, my current house actually. But this place is so special, it was perfect back then, way better than some stuffy oversized house in Hartford." She looked around the place fondly again "In fact, I'm kicking you out so I can move back in" she joked and made her way back over to him.

He laughed at that and took another look at the place, this time with a more informed gaze. It really was cozy and so full of love. "I promise I'll take really good care of this place" he promised as he reached out to take her hand, "Thanks for letting me stay here." He now knew what a big deal it was for her to trust someone she barely knew to stay in the place she'd raised her daughter.

"I know you will" she said with a smile as she laced their fingers together. She wasn't sure why she had such a good feeling about letting him stay here, she expected to feel nervous about someone staying in the place that had been her safe haven when she had nothing. She didn't feel anxious though; it just felt right that Shawn was there. "Oh crap" she muttered as she turned their clasped hands so she could check her watch "I'm late for a meeting" she explained as she dropped his hand and headed for the door "You can go ahead and start setting this place up, there's some spare bedframes and mattresses in the storage room in the main building. You can try setting it up yourself or get one of the maintenance guys to help. There's also fresh linens and towels right down the hall from the storage room. Just ask Michel to point you in the right…no actually, just ask one of the maids, Gillian or Annie should be able to help you, just tell them you're our new employee."

"Ooh can I make up a cool job title?" He asked as he followed her out so he could start getting things from the Inn to help get him set up. "I want to sound really legit so people around here really respect me."

"Sure, just don't make it sound too official or Michel will whine about it for weeks and he'll think you're getting paid more than him. On second thought…make it sound as official as you want." A wicked smile crossed her face as she headed into the Inn and toward one of the meeting rooms "I'll catch up with you later" she promised, a bit dismayed that this meeting was cutting into time spent with Shawn.

"I'll be around" he told her as he eagerly set off to get his bags from the room upstairs and start making the shed feel homey without taking away anything from what made it so special to Lorelai.

* * *

A/N: Kind of an awkward place to end the chapter, I apologize, but the next chapter is mostly written and I'll try my best to have it posted in a week! Please review and let me know what you think of the story so far and if you have any suggestions for character interactions you'd like to see! There will be more Psych people eventually, I promise.


	3. Learning French Can Be Fun

"Hey Mom" Rory called out as she walked through the front door of the Inn and made her way behind the front desk.

"Hi kid" Lorelai greeted in return, not taking her eyes of the computer screen where she was busy trying to finalize the scheduling details for a retirement party. "How was school?" She asked as her daughter sat down on the stool behind the desk and pulled out her homework.

"Good…I got an A on my English paper and scored two whole points higher on my math test than Paris." She said gleefully as she started her French homework while secretly surveying the lobby. "So any interesting guest stories today?" She queried as she gave her mom a knowing look.

"Ugh not you too" Lorelai sighed in exasperation as she tore her focus from the computer to look at Rory "As if Sookie wasn't obvious enough about it at breakfast, Babette and Miss Patty cornered me when I stopped in Luke's for lunch and demanded I tell them all about the 'handsome James Dean stranger' I met yesterday." She rolled her eyes even though a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"So you're saying the whole town knows more about this guy than I do?" Rory asked, playing the guilt card as she gave her mom innocent Bambi eyes. "Tell me, will I be invited to the wedding or will Kirk just show me the photos?"

Lorelai snorted at that "You're just as bad as the rest of this town, I met this guy yesterday and already everyone's trying to marry us off. For all I know, he could be a murderer, or a drug addict, or…he could really hate coffee!"

Michel appeared behind the counter before Rory could respond to her mother's ranting "Lorelai, I was just informed that you hired that imbecile to work here, and I thought 'Oh, well clearly this is some sort of joke because that man cannot possibly be qualified to be employed as anything other than a clown at a children's party.' But then, I was told by Gillian the maid that you are also allowing that obnoxious over-sized child to live here." He narrowed his eyes at the innocent smile she was giving him "So now I am wondering what I could have possibly done to make you punish me in this way."

"It's not a punishment Michel, he's a really great guy and we needed some help around the Inn. I think you two just got off on the wrong foot, why don't you go kiss and make up." She teased as she made some kissy noises at him.

"Never" Michel growled as he stormed off again.

Rory gave her mother an amused smirk "Do you often hire potential murderers, drug addicts and coffee-haters to work and live at the Inn?"

"Yes. It's a little known business secret I live by. They're cheap labor and have great stories." She muttered dryly as she avoided looking at her daughter who was a little too entertained by this.

"You would not believe how many French curse words I've learned from Michel already." Shawn said with a grin as he walked up to the counter to greet Lorelai "I don't know exactly what they mean, but 'tu es un pauvre con' can't be a compliment."

Lorelai looked up in surprise at his voice and suddenly felt very nervous. She could feel her daughter tense up a bit too; knowing who the stranger was before they were even introduced. "That one's not too bad actually, wait til he pulls out 'fils de pute'." she replied a bit awkwardly before shifting her gaze to her daughter and then back to Shawn.

"That one actually sounds a bit fun. Do you know French? I wanna be able to annoy him in his native language, but the only French I know is 'Voulez vous-couchez avec moi, ce soir?'"

Lorelai couldn't help but grin at that because that was the only French she knew too. Also it had the side benefit of being dirty, and she really liked the way it sounded coming out of his mouth in addition to the way he was looking at her. Suddenly she remembered her French-student daughter was right next to her and still sitting there uncomfortably. She broke her heated gaze with Shawn and turned to look at her daughter "Oh, right….um Shawn this is Rory, Rory this is Shawn."

"Rory?" Shawn questioned nervously, suddenly very embarrassed at the line he had just used, he had meant it innocently, but now he felt like it was a terrible first impression to make. "It's good to meet you Rory" he said, swallowing his nerves so he didn't come across even weirder than he already had. "Your mom's told me a lot about you, you're the super genius who's going to Harvard."

"Yeah…well hopefully" Rory added as she nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. The guy seemed nice enough, and she had to admit she was glad he already knew about her, it would have been way more uncomfortable if this was the first time he learned about Lorelai's 16 year old daughter. "I've heard a lot about you too" she said, struggling to come up with conversation.

"She's lying" Lorelai blurted out, embarrassed that Rory told him that. She had only known him one day and she didn't want him to know she went home last night and blabbed all about him to her daughter. "Yeah, she's a compulsive liar, but I still love her" she said with a smile as she ruffled through Rory's hair. "What she really means is that I may have mentioned briefly that I met you at Luke's yesterday."

Shawn chuckled at that and nodded, observing Rory's unhappy scowl and Lorelai's flushed cheeks. "So after I walked her home last night she kept you up to gush about my sweet bike and amazing hair?" He asked Rory with a confident smirk that he directed at Lorelai.

"Yup exactly" Rory agreed with a nod, already feeling a little more comfortable around this guy. "I think she stayed up all night writing in her diary about it."

"Ugh! I did not!" Lorelai protested and shoved her daughter "I don't even have a diary! You're the one who obsessively documents every detail of your life like Harriet the Spy."

"Hey, that could be useful if she's every falsely accused of a crime, she has documentation of her alibi…although I'm pretty sure she'd have to have someone verify that." Shawn defended Rory, who gave him a grateful smile.

"Hey, why are you taking her side all of the sudden?" Lorelai said with a pout, not liking how they were ganging up on her.

"I'm sorry" Shawn said instantaneously, mesmerized by that pout she was giving him.

Lorelai smirked happily when she saw the effect her pout had on him and she exchanged a look with her daughter who rolled her eyes, but was unable hide her smile. "I need to go ask Michel a question about my French homework" Rory said as she excused herself to give them some private time.

"Just because Rory has those Bambi eyes doesn't mean you have to side with her all the time." Lorelai said as she turned her pout back on him just to see what he would do.

"Yeah, okay" he said with a slow nod, still transfixed by her expression. "I promise I'll be on your side more…unless I really like what Rory's saying…like how you talk about me aaaaalll the time."

"I don't" Lorelai grumbled in embarrassment as she turned her attention back to her work so he wouldn't see her blush.

"I like that you told your daughter about me" he admitted as he leaned closer to her.

"You do?" She asked timidly as she glanced at him again.

He nodded and grinned at her "I woke my best friend up last night just to tell him about you." He admitted which earned him one of her heart-warming smiles.

"So does your best friend get tired of hearing about all the gorgeous and hilarious women you meet on your trip?" She asked with a smirk, hoping she wasn't being too obvious trying to figure out if he met women like her all over the country.

Shawn flashed back to his conversation with Gus and remembered his friend being confused about why it was so critical that Shawn tell him about the woman he had met. He knew it was rare he mentioned girls he met on the trip to Gus. Of course about hooking up with girls, but he couldn't recall the last time he'd ever been excited to tell his best friend about a girl he really liked. "I don't think so, women like that aren't very common." He explained to her with a shrug, figuring that was a safe enough answer without having to admit to her that he'd never gushed about a girl on the phone to his best friend since he'd had a massive crush on Abigail Lytar in high school. He noticed the brief flicker of uncertainty cross her face when he said that "Women like you" he clarified to let her know he definitely found her to be both beautiful and witty.

"It's such a pity more women can't be like me" she replied with a happy smile, her ego fully restored after his compliment. "Although then I might have more competition for the hot guys with awesome hair who ride motorcycles."

"I hate to break it to you, but Steve McQueen is dead." Shawn joked, trying to disguise his flattered smirk with a joke.

"What? Damn" she sighed in mock disappointment "I guess you'll have to do then."

"I appreciate the enthusiasm" he replied with a wink as he leaned a bit closer to her "So, what are you up to tonight?"

"Hmmm well I was planning on having a drink at the trendy bar down the street, then eating dinner at the new 5 star restaurant in town followed by dancing at the only club worth going to…oh wait, this is Stars Hollow…so take out from Al's and movie night with Rory." She said with a playful smirk, wondering what exactly he thought people did at night in this town besides eat dinner and spend time with their families.

"Oh, right" he said dejectedly, forgetting that parents liked to spend time with their kids. He wasn't used to hanging out with women who had children, so he wasn't sure exactly how he was supposed to go about asking her out on a date.

Lorelai mistook his inquiry for loneliness and instantly felt bad for teasing him. He was new to town and probably just didn't want to spend time alone. "You're more than welcome to join us, I mean I know it doesn't sound like the most exciting evening…but just wait until Rory and I start commentary on the Matthew Broderick _Godzilla_, you'll think you're watching Mystery Science Theatre 3000, only less robots and more pretty girls doing the commentary." She gave him her most adorable smile, hoping to convince him. She wasn't sure why, but she was suddenly very eager to get him to come over.

Her smile was infectious and he couldn't help but return it. "Hmm well I can never pass up mocking bad Broderick" he replied, noticing the way her grin lit up even more at that "Only if you're sure I wouldn't be imposing."

"On what? A night in with my daughter? Please, we do this every night, I'm sick of her by now." She joked and couldn't resist doing her hair flip that she knew men found irresistible "So we'll see you at six?"

Shawn was a bit distracted from the hair flip and just nodded "Uh yeah…six" he agreed before stepping closer, his gaze lowering to her mouth.

Her breath hitched in her throat as she noticed the way he was fixated on her lips, which she pouted slightly for his benefit. She realized just how effective her hair flip really was and couldn't help leaning in towards him, hoping he'd make a move.

"Lorelai!" Emily Gilmore's voice rang out through the lobby as she spotted her daughter and purposefully strode towards her.

"Get out while you can" Lorelai hissed at Shawn, ignoring his confused expression and practically shoving him until his feet took the hint and took him from the room.

"Lorelai" Emily repeated as she reached her daughter "Do you make a habit of flirting so blatantly with people around the Inn? It's very inappropriate." She scolded while trying to get a glance at the man who had just left, wondering if this was a boyfriend her daughter hadn't told her about.

"Only the ones who can get me free stuff" Lorelai joked dryly, wondering why her mother had such terrible timing and why she was even here at all.

"I hope that's a joke" Emily muttered, not amused by her daughter's antics "Who was that man anyway? Are you in a relationship?"

"Yes it was a joke Mother, and no I'm not…and I wasn't even flirting, he works here and I was just having a conversation."

"Well that was much too close to be talking to an employee Lorelai, you're giving him improper thoughts about the matter of your relationship."

"I hope so" Lorelai muttered under her breath, wishing she were still having her conversation with Shawn and not her mother. "Why are you…I mean what can I do for you Mom?"

"I'm here to see Rory, I stopped by the house but no one was home. I figured if she wasn't here, you'd know where she was." Emily explained as she glanced around the lobby.

"She's here, she's working on her homework" Lorelai replied and then gave her mother a curious look "Why do you need to see Rory?"

"I'm ordering her more Chilton apparel, I knew you wouldn't approve so there was no reason to ask you for her measurements. I decided to go right to the source this time." Emily told Lorelai "I'll just go and find Rory, I've taken up enough of your time. I'm sure there's a gardener around here waiting for his lap dance." Emily quipped with a look of disapproval towards her daughter before going to find her granddaughter.

"I swear, she has to have some sort of pager that alerts her when I'm happy, and she just hops on her broomstick to come destroy my soul a little bit more." Lorelai muttered before realizing she was talking to herself. She started pouring her frustrated energy into her work and it wasn't long before a smile reappeared on her face; after all, Shawn was coming over tonight and she couldn't stay upset when she had that to look forward to.

* * *

A/N: There's absolutely no satisfactory excuse for why it took me this long to update. I really thought I would finish this story during the summer, but I just couldn't find the motivation. But all of your lovely reviews and the follower/favorite notifications made me feel incredibly guilty so now I'm back and I'm going to try and work on it as much as I can right now. This month is really busy so I might only post one other chapter this month, or I might post more, you never know. But reviews really do inspire me to write because they let me know if you all still like the story!


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